The famous Hollywood actress Salma Hayek has been married to French billionaire François-Henri Pinault for 10 years. The couple are raising a common daughter, Valentina Paloma, who was born a year and a half before the official registration of their relationship. Despite the high financial status of her husband, Salma continues to work and is proud of her financial independence.
The path to happiness
With a luxurious and flamboyant appearance, Hayek has never lacked male attention. However, on the threshold of her 40th birthday, she was still free from marriage and had no children. Billionaire François-Henri Pinault divorced his wife Dorothy Leper in 2004 after 8 years of marriage. In this union, he became the father of two children - the son of François and the daughter of Matilda. Then, in the businessman's personal life, there was a short affair with supermodel Linda Evangelista, but in January 2006 the lovers broke up.
Therefore, at the grand opening of the Palazzo Grassi in Venice, held in April 2006, Pino came accompanied by his brother and sister. The organizers of the event also invited the Mexican actress Salma Hayek, who was in Rome at the time. In fact, the acquaintance of the future spouses took place much earlier at one of the social events, but it was in Venice that they were finally able to communicate and understand that they were interested in each other. Later, Salma admitted that she almost instantly fell in love with her smart, extraordinary and funny interlocutor.
The relationship between the actress and the businessman developed so rapidly that in March 2007 Hayek announced her engagement to Pino and a long-awaited pregnancy. Already on September 21, she gave her beloved daughter Valentin Paloma. And although the child was born in Los Angeles, for the sake of the family, the Hollywood star decided to move to France and made a break in her acting career. However, in July 2008, Salma unexpectedly broke off the engagement. They say that the reason for the discord between the lovers was the news of another child of François-Henri. Linda Evangelista gave birth to the son of Augustine James in October 2006. However, the news of pregnancy did not prevent the businessman from ending the relationship with her. He did not acknowledge his paternity for a long time and only in 2011, during the court proceedings, agreed to provide financial support to the child.
Who is François-Henri Pinault
François-Henri Pinault is famous and famous in the business world no less than his star wife in the cinema. He was born in Rennes, the capital of French Brittany, to a wealthy and respected family. His father, François Pinault, started his own timber business in 1963, which eventually focused on retail sales. Pino then acquired several well-known luxury fashion houses. Since 2003, François-Henri has been at the helm of the family business. In 2013, he gave the international holding a new name - Kering.
The company owns such fashion brands as Gucci, Brioni, Yves Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen and many others. Pino Jr. has gone to great lengths to move away from retail and build an empire of luxury brands. In 2018, Harvard Business Review ranked François-Henri as the fourth most successful CEO in the world. At the same time, Fortune named him 8th in the Entrepreneur of the Year list.
Family idyll
Salma still forgave her daughter's father and gave their relationship a second chance. The actress got married on February 14, 2009 at the town hall of the Sixth arrondissement in Paris. Two months later, on April 25, the couple arranged a magnificent wedding celebration in Venice - where their love story began. The celebration took place at the La Fenice opera house. The happy bride shone in a luxurious dress from the fashion house Balenciaga, owned by her husband's family holding. The stellar guest list included the names of Bono, Melanie Griffith, Penelope Cruz, Javier Bardem, Antonio Banderas, Ashley Judd, Woody Harrelson, Charlize Theron and even former French President Jacques Chirac. Hayek and Pino's wedding expenses were about $ 3.5 million.
After the birth of her daughter and marriage, Salma was thinking about ending her film career, but her husband convinced her that she should work and bring joy to her fans. However, the actress herself appreciates independence, and her career achievements allow her to calmly relate to her husband's financial status. In addition to filming a movie, Hayek has proven herself as a successful producer. In particular, she participated in the creation of the popular TV series Ugly Betty. In 2014, while preparing the animated film The Prophet, Salma unexpectedly lost one of her investors. Although not immediately, François-Henri convinced his wife to accept his help and provided the project with the necessary financial support.
Talking about family happiness, the actress admits that she does not accept long separations from her husband or daughter, no matter how busy her work schedule is. In addition, Salma values romance in family relationships. François-Henri is still able to surprise his wife with flowers, beautiful messages or private dates. After years of a strong and happy marriage, Hayek sadly recalls his desperate attempts to find a soul mate. Fear of loneliness prevented her from critically assessing potential boyfriends. “I would like to say to myself, 'Hey, take it easy. You will have a wonderful and loving husband, "the actress admitted and added:" Then I would have saved myself from many personal dramas."
